Rather than producing individual blog posts, I thought I’d include all of the beaches under the one article.
Whilst I have your attention…other than Carbis Bay, all of the beaches in St Ives are difficult to access. There’s limited parking in summer and (more recently) winter months. The best option is generally getting to St Ives early morning or parking up at Carbis and walking in or getting the train from either St Erth Station or Carbis Bay.
It’s 2023 and we’re currently gearing up for our first full moon swim. We’ve picked a stunning lake on the Lizard Peninsula, for a number of reasons.
consistent conditions. We’ve swum in the lake in 60-70kmph winds, with minimal impact on the water conditions.
Delightful nearby cafe, changing and toilet facilities.
Contained area, easy to plan water safety and monitor swimmers.
The Lizard is renowned for stargazing…with minimal local light pollution.
We’re offering two swimming groups, limited to 24 swimmers. Swimming will then be followed by a hot meal and drink, in the cafe…and a good old social.
Sea Swim Cornwall have been trying to set up a night swim / full moon swim for a number of years and have been unsuccessful…for various reasons. So we’re really excited to get this off the ground!
Whether you’re a wild dipping enthusiast or a serious open water swimmer - Cornwall offers more coastline than the rest of the south west put together…and what a coastline! I’m based in Penzance and we’re spoilt for choice but it’s the same throughout Cornwall. The main advantage we have in Penzance is that we have beaches and swims that pretty much face every direction. This obviously means that you can generally get a swim in regardless of the conditions, with minimal driving involved.
Photo supplied by www.saltwaterimages.co.uk
Here’s a run down of where to swim in various areas…although I may miss out some of my favourite ‘secret spots’ :
ST IVES : Carbis Bay is always a winning choice - clear water, sheltered from S wind/conditions. Easy to add distance if you want an adventurous swim. Rarely any swell. You could attempt the ‘Island’ if you’re feeling really adventurous but we’d recommend a guide and prefect conditions. Any of the town beaches offer beautiful wild dip opportunities.
PENZANCE : the whole of the Mousehole area is world class, especially at high tide. Porthleven Harbour is a swim you’ll remember but again you’ll need a guide, you need to get the tide right. You have several beaches around the Porthcurno area…and if you’re really adventurous you can try and find the beach at Zennor…it is a bit of a scramble down to it mind.
NEWQUAY : can be tricky as it’s hard to escape a westerly wind and big or rough seas if the conditions are challenging. The Gannel Estuary at high is a stunner! As is Crantock Beach when the conditions are flat. You can travel north to Mother Ivey’s Bay. Whipsiddery to Watergate is one of my fave’s but it’s quite secluded…only attempt that one if the conditions are right, you’re a competent & experienced swimmer and you have company.
ST AUSTELL : straight to either Charlestown or Porthpean. A swim from one to the other…and possibly back. Can’t go wrong! Gorran Haven just down the road is also worth a mention and visit. Lovely little village, full of character. There is another beach in the Gorran Haven area…but I don’t want to upset the locals!
FALMOUTH : I’ve always enjoyed getting off the main drag in Falmouth and popping around the corner from Gyllyngvase to Swanpool or Maenporth. Great spots from swimming!
THE LIZARD : Oh boy! Take your pick. Kynance, Cadgwith, Lizard Point, Church Cove…. Take a few days off.
Photo courtesy of www.saltwaterimages.co.uk
We’ll check in at a later date and talk about north Cornwall.
Jo - the sailor and river expert of the team, had been telling me about this little harbour near St Mawes for ages. A few years ago, whilst we went sailing with Jo he pulled up nearby and we rowed over to a nearby beach. We then walked along the coastal path to St Just-in-Roseland harbour. Whilst on the walk I wore my speedos and flip flops, opting to carrying my wetsuit. It was a Sunday and I got some very funny looks as I strutted past the church…that just happened to have finished it’s Sunday activities and…of course, all of the attendees left the church to be confronted by a young(ish) man, in a very colourful pair of speedos and his flip-flops! What a treat for all concerned!
Anyway, we’ve since taken a few groups here and they’ve all fallen in love with the place. You have to make sure that you get the tides right, or you’ll be dragging yourself through the mud flats. Stunning area and a stunning swim. This will be the start of our St Mawes Swimfari 2021.
Newquay is obviously far better known for it’s surfing but she does offer some fantastic swims as well. The issue with swimming in Newquay is quite simple. Most of the coast faces west / north west…meaning that if the wind is blowing in from that direction with any force you’ll be a little stuck for a flat and sheltered swim.
The summer season often offers high pressures and small swell. So, if you’re planning some swims in Newquay the peak summer seasons might be the time. Even in the peak months if you swim at around 8-9.30am it’ll be nice and quiet. To list but a few (we’ll try) check out :
Crantock Beach and the Gannel Estuary (we have a safe swimming guide on swimming the Gannel)
Polly Joke for a mid-high tide wild dip
Porth Beach at mid-high tide
Try body surfing! Great fun
There are also short drives up & down to areas like Mother Ivey’s Bay, St Agnes, Porthcothan…. A strong westerly wind may rule out swims in Newquay but St Austell and Charlestown are only a short drive away and generally offer safe swimming conditions. If conditions are horrendous Newquay Harbour and the Gannel may still offer a quick dip option.
We went and did it again. Another year, another crazy charity challenge.
Tom’s grandma (in-law) is 92 and her health hasn’t been great of late. When trying to find an aquatic wheelchair to borrow to get her into the geothermal section of the Jubilee Pool we really couldn’t find anything. This inspired Tom to dedicate this years challenge to Joyce Cooper. The Jubilee Pool also very generously agreed to let her be the first person to use this new section of a world class lido.
We set ourself the goal of raising £2,500. We didn’t quite make that total but we did reach £2,000 and bought one of our preferred chairs.
THE CHALLENGE : we wanted to show off Cornwall a bit, take in lots of glorious swims and rack up a decent distance. So Tom devised the 1km challenge. We set out to swim 1km on as many beaches in Cornwall as we could, in 1 day. We managed 22 beaches, in the daylight of 1 day. We could have possibly completed more but Tom’s left arm stopped working (it’s still swollen 5 days later) and Jo’s just plain old!
We thoroughly enjoyed the day. Absolutely didn’t train up for the challenge (again!), made what we think is a great video, explored some new beaches and some how only paid £4.50 in car park charges!
HIGHLIGHTS : swimming at Mother Ivey’s Bay, Whipsiddery beach to Porth Beach, always Crantock and the video. We’re really happy with the video.
Having taken a few bookings for St Michael’s Mount swims that I’ve had to reschedule and cancel I figured we might be doing things the wrong way around. At which point I had a brain-wave.
We’re going to look at the week’s conditions on a Tues-Wed and then put on swims that weekend based on the conditions. This will mean that we can plan swims around St Michael’s Mount, Porthcurno, the ‘Island’ in St Ives, Mousehole Island etc with real confidence that the conditions will be ideal for that swim.
This will effectively mean that you can complete a world-class, bucket list swim in the ideal conditions!
We’ll arrange time slots for that weekend that you can book. Each slot will cost £100 and you can have up to 8 people (6 in some cases) per slot…meaning some swims will cost as little as £12.50 per head. With current Covid restrictions, if you arrange a group of 6-8 we’ll simply split you into 2 smaller groups. * If you’re an individual or couple without a group let us know and we’ll try and marry you up with a few people in the same situation so the swim is affordable.
We’ll also possibly look at evening swim in the week.
WE’LL ANNOUNCE SWIMS THROUGH OUR SOCIAL MEDIA CHANNELS - SO KEEP YOUR EYES PEELED
*** CRAZY CHARITABLE SWIM ***
It's that time of year again. Each year Tom & Jo train up, swim loads, get on the weights, board paddle, run, build some good core strength and conditioning... this typically happens directly after they do a crazy, endurance charity challenge and this year is absolutely no different!
On Friday 10th July (with the 17th as a back up date) we'll attempt to swim 1km on as many beaches in Cornwall as we can in one day – (hopefully 25-30) to raise vital funds to help other, less physically able people to experience the joys of the water.
Our story starts with my partner's Gran, Joyce Cooper who - at 92 and after a lifetime of open water swimming - is desperate to return to the sea, possibly for the last time. Having gradually lost mobility, she is now in need of all-terrain wheelchair access to the water, and we’d love to generate enough money for the iconic Jubilee Pool in Penzance to have a permanent sand chair so that a range of older and disabled people can be granted easy access into the new geothermal pool and the sea via the neighbouring slipway off Penzance promenade.
Joyce was at the Jubilee’s original opening in 1935 and has continued to swim there with four generations of her family ever since. She is proof of the positive impact that both swimming and seawater have on physical and mental wellbeing – and how important it is that everyone can have the chance experience this.
Wouldn’t it be a fitting finale to her Jubilee Pool story for Joyce to enjoy another sea dip and to pave the way for others to find similar freedom in the water?
Please share her story and donate what you can.
Thank you!
LINK : https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/wheelchair-for-jubilee?utm_term=6kEKPgnPe
